Elon Musk walked out on stage and did a celebratory jumping jack. His arms stretched wide over his head as he hopped in jubilation.
The galvanized Musk had just been re-granted his $46 billion pay plan that a Delaware judge had previously voided. Tesla shareholders voted to reinstate the package, which the company’s board had lobbied for them to do, and signed off on moving its state of incorporation to Texas.
“I just want to start off by saying hot damn, I love you guys,” Musk told Tesla’s shareholders at the meeting in Austin and those on the live stream.
Immediately after the preliminary vote results were announced, the crowd in attendance erupted into applause. Shareholders were then treated to a sizzle reel touting Tesla’s achievements in sustainability, new product lineups, and its innovation pipeline, which includes fully self-driving cars and a line of humanoid robots called Optimus. The video opened with voiceovers of some of Tesla’s harshest critics. “Tesla could go bust,” boomed the voice of investor Per Lekander, a noted Tesla bear.
In the video Musk brushed away these criticisms, as he would just minutes later with characteristic confidence in his live presentation. In his remarks Musk outlined his vision for the future of Tesla, which hinges on its ability to deliver fully autonomous vehicles. “We’re not just opening a new chapter for Tesla—we’re starting a new book,” Musk declared.
Tesla has a bright financial future, according to Musk. “I think just based on vehicle autonomy, we can we can 110x the value of the company,” Musk said. “I believe that’s what will happen.”
At least one investor agreed with his towering projection. ARK Invest, the fund managed by longtime backer Cathie Wood, said it believed Tesla could reach an $8 trillion market cap. Wood’s firm issued a whopping $2,600 price target for Tesla in 2029. The analysis banked on self-driving cars turning its revenue model and profit margins into those of a software company. “This becomes a recurring revenue model, a slice of every mile driven on that autonomous taxi network,” Wood told CNBC Thursday morning prior to the vote.
In the past, Musk has said that once Tesla completes its self-driving software the company will immediately upload it to all its vehicles currently in the market. Doing so could, virtually overnight, create a fleet of self-driving cars all potentially sharing revenues with Tesla. The plan often overlooks the role regulators would have to play in allowing the move to happen.
Elon Musk at the Milken Institute’s Global Conference on May 6, 2024 in Beverly Hills, Cal
